Cognitive Cognitive Processes Processes

in in AdulthoodAdulthood

PerspectivesPerspectives

Organismic: Piaget Organismic: Piaget – formal operations: abstractionsformal operations: abstractions– Post-formal operationsPost-formal operations

Problem findingProblem finding Dialectical reasoningDialectical reasoning

Mechanistic: Social learningMechanistic: Social learning Contextual: Vygotsky – Contextual: Vygotsky –

interactionsinteractions Psychometric: intelligencePsychometric: intelligence

IntelligenceIntelligence

What is it?What is it?– inherited and acquiredinherited and acquired– no general definitionno general definition

Intelligent BehaviourIntelligent Behaviour– goal-oriented (conscious, deliberate)goal-oriented (conscious, deliberate)– adaptive (problem solving)adaptive (problem solving)

MultidimensionalMultidimensional

DiverseDiverse Cattell’s “g”Cattell’s “g”

– Whatever intelligence tests measure: “IQ”Whatever intelligence tests measure: “IQ” Thurstone: seven primary mental Thurstone: seven primary mental

abilitiesabilities Sternberg: cognitive approachSternberg: cognitive approach

– analytic (academic)analytic (academic)– practical (problem solving)practical (problem solving)– creativecreative

Cattell & Horn: two Cattell & Horn: two “competencies”“competencies” Fluid Intelligence: flexible Fluid Intelligence: flexible

reasoningreasoning– Basic mental abilitiesBasic mental abilities– E.g., abstract thinking, speed of E.g., abstract thinking, speed of

thinking, problem solvingthinking, problem solving Crystallized intelligence: factsCrystallized intelligence: facts

– Information acquired from education Information acquired from education and experienceand experience

Gardner: multiple Gardner: multiple intelligencesintelligences Logical/mathLogical/math LinguisticLinguistic Visual/spatialVisual/spatial MusicalMusical Body/kinestheticBody/kinesthetic InterpersonalInterpersonal IntrapersonalIntrapersonal

Intelligence and AgingIntelligence and Aging

Stereotype:Stereotype: intellectual activity peaks at 18-intellectual activity peaks at 18-

19 years19 years declines steadily with agedeclines steadily with age

Developmental Developmental Research Shows:Research Shows: most intellectual abilities stable most intellectual abilities stable

throughout early and middle throughout early and middle adulthoodadulthood

cohort differences = powerful cohort differences = powerful influence on intelligence influence on intelligence differencesdifferences

many factors affect intellectual many factors affect intellectual functioning: education, health, functioning: education, health, mental well-beingmental well-being

Growth, Stability, or Growth, Stability, or Decline?Decline?

Decrementalist vs. Decrementalist vs.

Continued Potential views Continued Potential views

Psychometric Psychometric PerspectivePerspective Focus on:Focus on: measuring the mindmeasuring the mind individual differencesindividual differences description, not explanationdescription, not explanation

Intelligence TestingIntelligence Testing

Francis GaltonFrancis Galton Cattell, BinetCattell, Binet Wechsler Adult Intelligence ScalesWechsler Adult Intelligence Scales

Verbal (language, knowledge)Verbal (language, knowledge) Performance (manipulate info. to Performance (manipulate info. to

solve problems)solve problems)

Greater decline in performance Greater decline in performance than verbal tests over agethan verbal tests over age

Fluid vs. CrystallizedFluid vs. Crystallized

Decline in fluid, stable/increase in Decline in fluid, stable/increase in crystallizedcrystallized

Seattle Longitudinal Seattle Longitudinal Study (Warner Schaie, Study (Warner Schaie, 1994)1994) 5,000 participants 5,000 participants

(representative)(representative) Studied six times, at 7-year Studied six times, at 7-year

intervalsintervals Several cohorts (21-71 years)Several cohorts (21-71 years) Began in 1956, latest testing in Began in 1956, latest testing in

19921992

Charted course of 6 primary Charted course of 6 primary mental abilities (PMAT)mental abilities (PMAT)– inductive reasoninginductive reasoning– numeric abilitynumeric ability– verbal abilityverbal ability– spatial orientationspatial orientation– verbal memoryverbal memory– perceptual speedperceptual speed

Cross-Sectional Cross-Sectional ResultsResults Much individual variabilityMuch individual variability Maintenance/increase to @ age Maintenance/increase to @ age

5050 Decline in performance beyond Decline in performance beyond

50 yrs.50 yrs. Verbal memory best maintainedVerbal memory best maintained Perceptual speed most reducedPerceptual speed most reduced

Longitudinal ResultsLongitudinal Results

cohort differencescohort differences no change/increase in no change/increase in

performance across ageperformance across age

Performance of total sample at Performance of total sample at each measurement intervaleach measurement interval– peak at midlifepeak at midlife– increasing decline with ageincreasing decline with age

Cohort Effects (over 28 years)Cohort Effects (over 28 years)– Break data down by birth dateBreak data down by birth date– Positive Cohort TrendsPositive Cohort Trends– Later-born perform better than Later-born perform better than

earlier-born (in general)earlier-born (in general)

General Conclusions General Conclusions about Age-Effectsabout Age-Effects Large individual differences in Large individual differences in

degree, rate, and pattern of degree, rate, and pattern of change with agechange with age

Different aspects of intelligence Different aspects of intelligence follow different patterns of follow different patterns of change with time (e.g., change with time (e.g., crystallized vs. fluid intelligence)crystallized vs. fluid intelligence)

Cohort trends show influence of Cohort trends show influence of socio-historical context on cognitive socio-historical context on cognitive developmentdevelopment

In healthy adults, cognitive decline is In healthy adults, cognitive decline is small, at least until very late small, at least until very late adulthoodadulthood

Trends support combination of Trends support combination of decrement and continued-potentialdecrement and continued-potential

Factors Influencing Factors Influencing Intellectual Performance Intellectual Performance in Later Lifein Later Life HealthHealth

– normal vs. superior health normal vs. superior health (Botwinick & Birren, 1963)(Botwinick & Birren, 1963)

– superior > normal on WAISsuperior > normal on WAIS– slight deviations from optimal slight deviations from optimal

health affect intelligencehealth affect intelligence

Hypertension (Wilkie et al., Hypertension (Wilkie et al., 1971)1971)

– WAIS administered twice over 10 WAIS administered twice over 10 years (Time 1: 60-69 years)years (Time 1: 60-69 years)

– Largest decline for those with high Largest decline for those with high blood pressure at first testingblood pressure at first testing

Sensory changes: e.g., hearing Sensory changes: e.g., hearing LossLoss

– correlates negatively with correlates negatively with intelligence (e.g., Baltes et al., intelligence (e.g., Baltes et al., 1997)1997)

– greater loss – poorer performance greater loss – poorer performance (esp. on information, vocabulary (esp. on information, vocabulary tests)tests)

– Why?Why?

Organic Brain Syndrome Organic Brain Syndrome (institutionalized with dementia)(institutionalized with dementia)

– decline greater than in healthydecline greater than in healthy

EducationEducation

(Birren & Morrison, 1961)(Birren & Morrison, 1961) Number of years correlated with Number of years correlated with

intellectual performance in later intellectual performance in later lifelife

““General Intelligence” related to General Intelligence” related to years of education (50% of years of education (50% of variance), and not strongly variance), and not strongly related to age (10% of variance)related to age (10% of variance)

Initial Level of AbilityInitial Level of Ability

No differential effects on rate of No differential effects on rate of intellectual decline with ageintellectual decline with age

Relative levels maintained Relative levels maintained across lifespanacross lifespan